Remember Bob Dylan’s song “The Times They are A-Changin”? That was the 60’s, but people today appear to be in a swirl of change also. Is it just me or is technology changing so fast, it’s hard to keep current? Oh, I know the kids seem to be on top of it, but what about their parents or their grandparents?
How comfortable are you with the speed of your work life change? Many professionals say they are doing more with less support and their work has changed drastically from when they began. To make it worse, people feel that no one seems to understand their unique situation…how difficult things feel with no apparent way out.
When asked what change are you looking for, people at midlife often say “Freedom”. Freedom to do something different, freedom to direct the work day, and freedom from pressures. People are longing for: more autonomy and control, less stress, more laughter, more variety, less regulation, more appreciation and less responsibility.
By using our freedom in the past, many of us designed our lives around our interests and values. We chose careers we thought we would love or that would give us status, financial security, or meaning. Ten, twenty, thirty years later, are those careers still meeting our needs?
If yes, you are in good shape. If not, what can you do to become more satisfied? I hear many say, “I would really like ______, BUT______”. What follows are reasons, excuses, and barriers that appear so legitimate that no solution is possible. The result is often enduring dissatisfaction and a feeling of being trapped. Do you feel that way and will those barriers keep you from improving your life?
Today’s economy is confronting people with fewer jobs, less money and more needs. Aging parents are living longer, kids can’t find work and everyone seems to need our help. But if we’re looking for freedom, how will we create it?
What if instead of “But” we add “And” to our reasoning? “I really want to enjoy my work, but everything is changing for the worse, AND I’ll have to change with it”. Instead of hoping everything and everyone else will change back to what worked before, we have to step up and change. That action is the shortest line to getting what you want.
Of course, people can band together and push for organizational or societal change. And in your personal lives family and friends may change somewhat, if you make a request. But the distance to those changes is longer and outside much of your control.
You may not relish change, you are tired of changing and accommodating. When is it your turn to get a break? Perhaps, this could be your time. A chance for you to create a new way of living and working that better fits the maturely developed you.
If we don’t give away all of our energy at work and save some for the creative exploration called transformation, we may become intrigued and hopeful.
“Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after”
HENRY DAVID THOREAU
It may be time to contemplate what you have been searching for all your life and if you already have it. If you first appreciate what you already have in family, work, community, and self, how might that lead to your freedom? Or is freedom what you are really after?
Try this out: I would like __________But__________And__________
Here’s an example:
I would like to change my career, BUT I can’t afford to lose my salary and benefits AND so I will begin to examine what other possibilities exist.
Happy fishing and see you on the path!
